The Village of Hinsdale holds two Park Clean-Up Day events every year to offer the community a chance to give back to the parks that so often offer respite to its residents. This year, the communal spring clean up landed on Earth Day.
“It’s the first time we’ve actually done it on Earth Day,” said Heather Bereckis, Superintendent of Parks & Recreation. “Usually we end up doing it around that day because the timing never works out, so we’re really excited about it.”
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On Thursday, April 22, between Katherine Legge Memorial Park, Robbins Park, Burns Field Park and Stough Park, 51 volunteers showed up to clean and plant some trees.
Hinsdale Parks and Forestry Department employee Robert Autin prepares a new white pine for planting during Spring Park Clean Up Day on Thursday, April 22, 2021 at Katherine Legge Memorial Park in Hinsdale. Projects included planting, painting and debris removal.
According to Bereckis, with the help of Forestry Department employees, eight white pine trees were planted at Katherine Legge Memorial.
White pine seeds typically attract rabbits, squirrels and provide nesting sites for many birds including woodpeckers, mourning doves, chickadees and nuthatches.
Jacob Arreola of Hinsdale finds a piece of trash while volunteering with his parents during Spring Park Clean Up Day on Thursday, April 22, 2021 at Katherine Legge Memorial Park in Hinsdale. Projects included planting, painting and debris removal.
Other cleaning projects at each park covered litter and trash pickups, painting, debris removal and mulching.
Bereckis estimated that the volunteers collected over twenty, 40-gallon bags of trash in the span of two hours between four parks.
This story has been updated.